It’s the season’s second half, and Seattle is in the news again. This time was not for an All-Star game that oversaw history in the making but for an off-field incident. Since the season has entered the competitive frame, fans expect rivalries on and off the field. But in this case, it did not happen, which left not only the fans surprised but also the players.
Almost all the MLB teams have stores for the fans to buy merchandise. But what happens when they start selling merchandise of another team also? The Mariners did the same by placing Blue Jays merchandise for sale, and it failed big time to materialize. Apart from the Mariners fan, the Mariners’ star shortstop was also surprised by this move and did not hesitate to react.
Players are Against the Seattle Mariners’ Idea of a Blue Move
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After the all-star break, players and fans shifted their focus to the rest of the games. The second half of the season is the time when all teams aim for their postseason spot, avoiding all kinds of distractions. Be it on the field or off the field, every action matters, which reflects the essence of the team.
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But the Seattle Mariners’ idea of putting Toronto Blue Jays merchandise in their exclusive stores went against this. Whatever the profitability it may generate, players were unhappy and showed it in their responses. Talkin’ Baseball shared a post reflecting on the case on Twitter. It read,” Paul Sewald and J. P. Crawford on the Mariners selling Blue Jays merch in their team store.”
Paul Sewald and J.P. Crawford on the Mariners selling Blue Jays merch in their team store pic.twitter.com/AHrC0IQa9i
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 18, 2023
Reportedly, Paul Sewald put his disbelief into “What the hell”. While J. P. Crawford, who is on a $51 Million contract, had a similar question. As fans also had this similar opinion, it made the Mariners make changes as they removed the Blue Jays merch from the store. Talkin’ Baseball shared another update saying, the Blue Jays merch is no longer available.
The Blue Jays gear is no longer in the Mariners team store
(via @Softykjr) pic.twitter.com/qiSEeko1Kt
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 19, 2023
Though the entire episode ended, it gave enough to the baseball community to reflect upon.
The baseball community has mixed version of thoughts on the case
The entire episode of Mariners- Blue Jays’ merch got mixed opinions. Though most opined, there was nothing wrong with it, Mariners’ fans had their rejection of it. The following tweets give us an idea of the entire situation.
Good.
Fans over profits.
— No (@Jack473836) July 19, 2023
Mariners are for sure the softest team
— Brian (@ultimatenovason) July 19, 2023
Though many fans thought otherwise and shared that there was no harm in putting it to have some earnings.
A lot of Canadians come down to watch the game, so…
— William Ward (@Sabermethodical) July 19, 2023
It’s a great idea….the visiting team has fans that come to the game too
— Zachary Prescott (@zaprescott4) July 19, 2023
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One fan also feels that it can add more to the money required to buy the Two Way Phenom Shohei Ohtani.
Only reason I’m fine with it as an Ms fan is so we can raise money for Shohei. Lord knows we’ll need it 😂
— Skiddy (@SkidmarkM) July 18, 2023
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The baseball community has different opinions on this unusual situation. And the world has no exact answer to this. Though what are your thoughts about the home team putting rival team merch in stores? Let us know your answer in the comments down below.
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